02-240. Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of public meeting and cancellation of public meeting.

SUMMARY:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Ad Hoc Groundfish Multi-Year Management Committee (GMMC) will hold a work session, which is open to the public. A previously noticed meeting of the GMMC is canceled.

DATES:

The GMMC meeting noticed for Thursday, January 10, 2002, and Friday, January 11, 2002, is cancelled (see 66 FR 64954, December 17, 2001). Instead, the GMMC will meet Thursday, January 31, 2002, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m; and Friday, February 1, 2002, from 8 a.m. until business for the day is completed.

ADDRESSES:

The work session will be held at the Pacific Fishery Management Council, West Conference Room, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97220; telephone: [phone].

Council address: Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97220.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Dan Waldeck or Dr. Don McIsaac, Pacific Fishery Management Council, 503-326-6352.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The formation of this ad hoc committee is in response to the Council's request for a committee to scope multi-year management approaches for the West Coast groundfish fishery. Multi-year management of the groundfish fishery would be synchronized with a multi-year groundfish stock assessment schedule. Full accommodation of federal notice and comment requirements would also be incorporated into the multi-year cycle. This is the second meeting of the committee, and the primary purpose of the meeting is to further develop the purpose and objectives of multi-year management, as well as alternative multi-year management approaches.

Although nonemergency issues not contained in the GMMC meeting agenda may come before the GMMC for discussion, those issues may not be the subject of formal GMMC action during the meeting. GMMC action will be restricted to those issues specifically listed in this document and any issues arising after publication of this document that require emergency action under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the GMMC's intent to take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

The meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Ms. Carolyn Porter at 503-326-6352 at least 5 days prior to the meeting date.

Dated: December 31, 2001.

Dean Swanson,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.